Graphics Will NEVER Make the Game
Published July 10, 2004
I'm amazed. Well, not too amazed I guess, but probably a little bit shocked. Through a little message board searching and a comment posted to another one of my editorials, I have come to find out that a rather large portion of the gamers in todays society STILL think that graphics are the most integral portion of a video game. I'm not sure how many times it has been written, but they are not and never will be.
The argument has been around for ages of course. The old "I can play this game because the graphics are dumb" quote has been uttered a few millions times and more. It is shocking to me. Are we that spoiled by flashy polygons being thrown at us from every angle that we can no longer appreciate the simplicity of Centipede? What about the nifty vector graphics of Asteroids? Will Pac-Man never be played again simply because the game doesn't look like the games of today?
Simply, no. There is a reason for the countless retro-gaming societies and conventions. These games play great. Maybe a bit simple, even archaic, but the gameplay these games provide is timeless. The graphics have nothing to do with entertainment value. It's not that games don't play well these days, but we need to get over this misnomer quickly.
Anyone around the age of 20 will certainly remember the era of full-motion video games. Games like Tomcat Alley, Prize Fighter, Rebel Assault, or Loadstar will certainly remember having their jaws hit the floor when they seen one. There seemed to be one problem with them: They played terrible. They were not fun at all. They all featured real video throughout the entire play time, but are hardly classics (Dragons Lair and Space Ace excused of course) even though they feature graphics unlike anything gamers had ever seen.
Countless other games have tried radical approaches to grab the gamers dollar by throwing flashy graphics at them in magazine and TV ads. Rise of the Robots was a commercial success mostly due to the new rendering process it used to animate the characters, but many gamers found out $50 later that the game was practically unplayable. Jim Power in the 3rd Dimension was a fairly popular release with a gimmicky 3-D effect. Shame most gamers could not beat the second stage due the unfair difficulty levels. Lastly, who could ever forget the goofy Holloseum by Sega, a laserdisc arcade game so unplayable, most gamers gave up even though it had "revolutionary" holographic, uh, graphics.
No matter how big video games become or how great they look, the gameplay will always be the key to a games success. Great graphics can certainly enhance the gaming experience, but they will never (nor have they ever been) be the key to enjoying a game. I'm not sure if this is an idea that will ever be completely eliminated from video gaming, but at least I can live myself knowing I tried.
Originally posted at Breaking Windows.
Matt Paprocki is the reviews editor for Digital Press, a video game website with an appreciation for the retro side of the industry. The deep game collection which spans nearly 30 systems and 2,000 games line his walls for research purposes. Matt strives to bring credibility to video game journalism, and take it in a new direction to aid the industry in becoming respected with all forms entertainment media.
- Graphics Will NEVER Make the Game
- Published: July 10, 2004
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- Section: Gaming
- Writer: Matt Paprocki
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Graphics may not be the be all and end all of gaming, they do play an important part. And gameplay isn't the overwhelming factor some people make it out to be. Crappy graphics can spoil your gaming experience. After all, would anyone let Hollywood get away with producing a film that shows the wires on the UFOs? Not unless there's a thick layer of irony on it. Graphics can't make a game, but they can break a game. That's why it's still considered a factor in games reviews. And that's why it's only one of many factors.
No, you can't show wires anymore, but you can show really bad CGI and get away with it. Go figure.
I've played very few games where the graphics ruined the experienced. Slowdown, frame rate issues, and stuff like that is usually the result of bad coding. Game like Disaster Report on the PS2 have just plain awful graphics, but it still was a blast to play (especially since it was highly original, but that is an entirely different story).
Kevin: Get an Intell II. They work alot better and don't die as often as the original models. I've been through at least 5 of the originals but my II has held on for years. Gotta have something to play Bump & Jump and Shark! Shark! on.
Matt:
You're the video game expert here. I have been trying to find an oldy-but-goody for a while now. I have no idea what the name of it is, but please try to help me out from a brief description...
I THINK it was a Sega Genesis game. It was basically just two spaceships fighting each other. One spaceship per player. They each looked different, had different weapons and defenses, different sizes and shapes, etc.
It was kinda lame against the computer, but CLASSIC to play against another person.
It's probably been a decade or more since I played it. (Maybe this rules out Sega Genesis? When did that come out?) But it was an awesome game.
Also: What game systems (if any) have picked up the classic "Sarge vs. Sarge"? I loved that one in the arcade...
Thanks in advance... :-0
The only game I can think of on the Genny that sounds right is Star Control, but it's a little deeper than just ship vs. ship. Check out this review and see if this rings a bell:
http://www.digitpress.com/reviews/starcontrol.htm
If that doesn't sound right, keep thinking. The system had a boaload of space and shooters, so narrowing it down could be tough.
The console came out in 89, August I believe. Bit more than a decade.
Now, as for Sarge vs. Sarge, I'm not real sure. Arcade games are not my expertise, but after booting up MAME, I found a game titled just "Sarge" by Midway. It came out in 85 and had you blowing stuff up with tanks. That's the only "Sarge" arcade game known too.
Now, I'm guessing a game named S vs. S would probably be similar to the superb Genral Chaos, also on the Genesis (though I could be completely wrong). Do a quick google search for it as now I'm strapped for time. See if it looks familiar. That may be what your thinking of.
there was a series of two-player (or one player vs computer) ship-on ship games that were quite simple, many years ago. i remember playing noe of them on the Amiga, although they were available on other micros and possibly a console or two. can't for the life of me remember the name of them though.
Can you remember if the view you had was 3d? 1st person?
MATT:
Re: Star Control - I'm not 100% sure, but that definitely sounds like it! Thanks for the tip. I may have to look for it on EBAY sometime...
As for "Sarge Vs. Sarge" I believe you are right that it was officially titled "Sarge" but in the arcade the title was simply displayed twice with a "Vs." in the middle.
Thanks again! :)
Man what about a classic game of Maniac Mansion on Original Nintendo. Like you said Matt, The graphics dont make the game. Alot of my favorite games lack in this area. It is all about how original and fun it is to play. In the point of the Nintendo Revoloution. I think Nintendo will do very well. They stated that there main ocncer is not Graphics, But How player frinedly the game is. The revoloution is name after the concept that, they beleive they will change gaming as we know it. And they can acheieve this by how interative and original there games our going to be for this system. Plus it helps that there console will be the first of its kind to be able to play every nintendo title ever made.
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You're bang on. I've been saying this for years. I refuse to buy a Playstation 2 or an XBox, but I still have an Intellivision. If only it worked.